The Medium

The AMD Ryzen 7 9700F paired with the AMD Radeon RX 7600 delivers a fundamentally resolution-bound experience in The Medium. The data shows that the 8 GB RX 7600 is the limiting factor at higher resolutions, while the 8-core/16-thread Ryzen 7 9700F provides sufficient headroom to keep frame pacing stable. This combo ranks in the 31st percentile overall (2007th of 2911 tested combos), indicating a mid-pack position that is heavily influenced by GPU memory capacity and bandwidth constraints.

Resolution Scaling

The measured FPS data reveals a steep and consistent performance cliff as resolution increases. At 1080p with Low settings, the combo achieves 92 FPS average, but this drops to 77 FPS at 1440p and further to 61 FPS at 4K. This represents a 33.7% performance loss from 1080p to 4K at Low settings, which is significant but not catastrophic. However, the scaling becomes far more punishing at higher quality presets.

At High settings, the average FPS falls from 41 at 1080p to 35 at 1440p (a 14.6% drop) and then to 27 at 4K (a 34.1% drop from 1080p). The Medium preset shows a similar pattern: 57 FPS at 1080p, 48 at 1440p (15.8% drop), and 38 at 4K (33.3% drop). The Ultra preset is the most demanding, with 33 FPS at 1080p dropping to 27 at 1440p (18.2% loss) and finally 22 at 4K (33.3% loss).

The scaling pattern indicates that the RX 7600's 128-bit memory bus and 288.0 GB/s bandwidth become the primary bottleneck as pixel count increases. The transition from 1080p to 1440p costs roughly 15-18% performance across all presets, which is relatively mild. The jump from 1440p to 4K is far more brutal, costing another 20-25% on top of that. This non-linear degradation points to the 8 GB GDDR6 frame buffer being exhausted at 4K, forcing the GPU to rely on slower memory management strategies.

At 1080p, the CPU has ample room to feed the GPU. The Ryzen 7 9700F's PassMark single-thread score of 4691 and multithread score of 36470 place it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs, meaning it is unlikely to be the limiting factor at any resolution tested. The data supports this: the FPS drops are proportionally larger than what would be expected from CPU overhead, and the frame time variance (min/max at Medium) remains tight even at 4K.

Settings Recommendations

The optimal balance of visual quality and playability is found at Medium settings with 1080p resolution. The measured data shows 57 FPS average with a minimum of 49 and maximum of 66, providing a smooth experience that stays above the 60 FPS threshold for most of the frame time distribution. At 1440p Medium, the average drops to 48 FPS (min 41, max 56), which is playable but noticeably less fluid. At 4K Medium, the 38 FPS average (min 32, max 44) is borderline for a horror title where frame pacing matters for atmosphere.

Low settings at 1080p delivers 92 FPS, which is excellent for competitive or high-refresh-rate play, but the visual compromise is substantial. The jump from Low to Medium at 1080p costs 35 FPS (a 38% reduction) but likely provides a meaningful improvement in shadow quality, texture filtering, and ambient occlusion for a horror game that relies on lighting and atmosphere. Given that the Medium preset at 1080p maintains a 49 FPS minimum, this is the safest recommendation for consistent performance.

At 1440p, High settings yield 35 FPS, which is too low for comfortable play in a game with slow, deliberate camera movement. Medium at 1440p (48 FPS) is the highest playable preset, though users with 120 Hz displays will notice the frame rate ceiling. At 4K, only Low settings (61 FPS) achieves playable performance; Medium (38 FPS) and High (27 FPS) are too demanding for the RX 7600's memory subsystem.

For users prioritizing visual fidelity over frame rate, 1080p High (41 FPS) is acceptable for a slower-paced horror game, but the 49 FPS minimum at Medium makes that preset the better choice. The Ultra preset is not recommended at any resolution, as even 1080p only manages 33 FPS, which is below the minimum threshold for smooth motion in this genre.

How This Combo Ranks

The combo rank of 2007 out of 2911 places this configuration in the 31st percentile of all tested CPU-GPU pairings in The Medium. This is a modest result, reflecting the RX 7600's position as a mid-range GPU. The GPU's PassMark G3D score of 16634 puts it in the 57th percentile of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals show why the combo ranking is not higher. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM scores 15199 (0.2% lower), the AMD Radeon Pro 560X scores 15082 (0.6% lower), and the AMD Radeon 680M scores 15270 (0.7% higher). This cluster of GPUs around 15000-15300 points indicates that the RX 7600 is competitive with entry-level options but sits below the mid-range tier that would push this combo into a higher percentile.

The CPU side is significantly stronger. The Ryzen 7 9700F's average benchmark score of 69996 puts it in the 94th percentile of all CPUs. Its nearest rivals include the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (69875, 0.2% higher), Intel Core i7-14700KF (70163, 0.2% lower), AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (69515, 0.7% higher), and Intel Core i7-14700K (69355, 0.9% higher). The CPU is clearly not the bottleneck in this combo; the GPU's 57th percentile standing is what drags the overall ranking down.

The gap between CPU and GPU performance tiers creates an imbalance. The Ryzen 7 9700F could easily drive a more powerful GPU in this game, as evidenced by the fact that FPS scales almost linearly with resolution changes, which is a GPU-bound characteristic. The data suggests that this combo is CPU-overkill for The Medium, and the 31st percentile ranking reflects the GPU's limitations rather than any CPU deficiency.

Measured FPS Breakdown

At 1920x1080, the combo delivers the following averages: Low 92 FPS, Medium 57 FPS (min 49, max 66), High 41 FPS, and Ultra 33 FPS. The 1080p results show a clear tiering where Low is playable at high refresh rates, Medium is the sweet spot for 60 Hz displays, and High/Ultra are for users who prioritize visuals over smoothness.

At 2560x1440, the averages shift to: Low 77 FPS, Medium 48 FPS (min 41, max 56), High 35 FPS, and Ultra 27 FPS. The 1440p results show that only Low and Medium exceed the 30 FPS minimum threshold for playable frame rates. The Medium preset's 41 FPS minimum is concerning for scenes with heavy particle effects or complex lighting, but the 48 FPS average is serviceable.

At 3840x2160, the averages are: Low 61 FPS, Medium 38 FPS (min 32, max 44), High 27 FPS, and Ultra 22 FPS. The 4K results demonstrate that this combo is only viable at Low settings, where 61 FPS provides a playable experience. The Medium preset's 32 FPS minimum is below the generally accepted 35 FPS floor for smooth gameplay, and the 22-27 FPS averages at High/Ultra are cinematic but not interactive.

The min/max data at Medium settings shows consistent frame time behavior across resolutions. At 1080p, the range is 49-66 (a 17 FPS spread), at 1440p it is 41-56 (15 FPS spread), and at 4K it is 32-44 (12 FPS spread). The narrowing range at higher resolutions suggests that the GPU is becoming more consistently saturated, with less headroom for frame time spikes. This is typical of a memory-bandwidth-limited scenario.

GPU Role

The AMD Radeon RX 7600 features 8 GB of GDDR6 memory on a 128-bit bus, providing 288.0 GB/s of bandwidth. The GPU's boost clock is 2655 MHz, with a game clock of 2250 MHz and base clock of 1720 MHz. The memory runs at 2250 MHz (18 Gbps effective). These specifications position the card as a 1080p-oriented solution, which is consistent with the measured results.

The 8 GB frame buffer is the primary constraint at 4K. The Medium is a game that uses high-resolution textures for environmental storytelling, and the data shows that 4K High (27 FPS) and Ultra (22 FPS) are nearly unplayable. The 38 FPS at 4K Medium suggests that the game is attempting to fit within the 8 GB limit but is struggling with memory allocation. The 128-bit bus width limits the rate at which textures can be streamed, which explains why the performance drop from 1440p to 4K is so steep.

The GPU's FP32 performance of 21.75 TFLOPS and texture rate of 339.8 GTexel/s are adequate for the game's visual complexity at 1080p, but the ROP count of 64 limits fill-rate-bound scenarios at higher resolutions. The 32 RT cores are present for ray-traced effects, but The Medium's fixed camera angles and pre-baked lighting mean that RT acceleration is not a primary factor in the measured results.

The RX 7600's percentile ranking of 57th places it in the lower half of all GPUs, and its nearest rivals confirm this positioning. The NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 OEM (15199) and AMD Radeon 680M (15270) are within 0.7% of the RX 7600's 15171 average benchmark score. This tight clustering suggests that the RX 7600 is not meaningfully faster than entry-level options in synthetic tests, though its 8 GB VRAM and RDNA 3.0 architecture provide better real-world scaling in modern titles like The Medium.

The GPU's 165 W TDP and dual-slot design indicate that it is not thermally constrained in a typical desktop build. The PCIe 4.0 x8 interface provides sufficient bandwidth for the 8 GB frame buffer, and the 450 W suggested PSU leaves headroom for the rest of the system.

FAQ

Q: What is the best resolution for this combo in The Medium?

A: 1080p is the only resolution where all presets are playable. Low delivers 92 FPS, Medium 57 FPS, High 41 FPS, and Ultra 33 FPS. At 1440p, only Low (77 FPS) and Medium (48 FPS) exceed 30 FPS averages.

Q: Can this combo handle 4K in The Medium?

A: Only at Low settings, where it achieves 61 FPS. Medium drops to 38 FPS, High to 27 FPS, and Ultra to 22 FPS. The 8 GB VRAM and 128-bit bus are insufficient for higher presets at 4K.

Q: How does the CPU compare to its direct rivals?

A: The Ryzen 7 9700F scores 69996, which is 0.2% higher than the AMD Ryzen 9 7940HX (69875) and 0.2% lower than the Intel Core i7-14700KF (70163). It outperforms the AMD Ryzen 9 7950X (69515) by 0.7% and the Intel Core i7-14700K (69355) by 0.9%.

Q: Is the GPU the bottleneck in this system?

A: Yes. The RX 7600 ranks in the 57th percentile of GPUs, while the CPU ranks in the 94th percentile. The FPS drops with resolution scaling indicate GPU-side limitations, particularly memory bandwidth and capacity.

Q: What frame rates can be expected at Medium settings?

A: At 1080p, the average is 57 FPS with a minimum of 49 and maximum of 66. At 1440p, the average is 48 FPS (min 41, max 56). At 4K, the average is 38 FPS (min 32, max 44).

Q: How does this combo rank against all tested combinations?

A: It ranks 2007th out of 2911 combos, placing it in the 31st percentile. This is a below-average result driven by the GPU's mid-range performance class, not the CPU.